4 Months old

Nico turned four months last week. He now weighs 7.3 kg (16 lbs) and is 62cms (almost 25 inches) long. I guess his weight gain is slowing down a little, although you wouldn't guess it by the way he chugs on his boobies. If I am slow in getting it out for him, he will literally push my shirt out the way, grab the breast and pull it to him.

We have now started giving him little bits of other foods. He gets to suck the juices out of any fruits we eat, and again, he will let you know in no uncertain terms if you're being too slow in giving him his share. Poor Abe usually holds him while we have fruit salad, and Nico is outraged when Abe takes a bite for himself. We have also tried him with rice cereal, although it may be too soon for that. He got the hang of eating pretty quick, but he then got a lot of gas and slept very badly, so we're going to postpone further attempts for a couple of weeks.

So far we haven't had to deal with any illness of any kind, although he continues to be a teething, drooling mess. No sign of any teeth breaking through yet, but there are several protrusions under the gums. He seems to really appreciate ice and water. He now drinks a bunch of water, a fan, just like the rest of the family.

He gets stronger and more capable each day. When he stands, holding onto your hands for support, he will pick up each leg in turn as though he wants to walk already. He certainly watches with keen interest each vigorous movement that his brother makes. He'll sit on his own, but you still have to put something or someone behind him as he cannot stop himself from falling backwards. He's really good at grabbing things as his coordination improves daily.

He is also very vocal. He likes to chatter away to his toys and to us, making all kinds of sounds that just DELIGHT Leo.

He continues to be calm and happy in general, but he has a temper on him. Though he doesn't often get mad, when he does it lasts for a while and there's nothing you can do about it. He doesn't want consolation, he wants to complain.

More and more we see a personality forming within this baby. He has learned his power over people, and will be quite the charmer. It seems like everything he does is funny to Leo, and Nico equally laughs loud at Leo's antics. Their love for each other is clearly growing.

Sleeping is definitely not his forte. He was starting to go longer intervals between feeds at night, and I was feeling rested, but then teething hit and he awoke far more frequently. Now, he has become accustomed to waking more often and I'm making it worse - I am now so tired that I often pick him up and put him at the breast lying down. We'll both fall asleep that way, which means he can wake up every so often and his snack bar is right there. I need to wake up properly and keep him awake to eat both breasts, so that he can sleep longer in between, but I'm too tired. Oh well, I'll work at it and hopefully by his next month's blog I can report an improvement in this field.

For photos and videos of this coming month, click here.